Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) on Tuesday introduced legislation calling for $28 million in emergency funds to help the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) address the nation’s infant formula shortage.
In a House briefing, DeLauro said there are two parts to the nationwide shortage: safety and supply, and “parents should not have to choose between these two things.” DeLauro, Democratic chair of the House Appropriations Committee, said her legislation addresses the “here and now” issue of the shortage, a crisis she blamed on industry monopolies.
“The shortage was caused in large part by corporate greed and consolidation,” DeLauro said. “There are only four manufacturers of infant formula in the United States.” In this case, DeLauro said, it was Abbott Nutrition that “put profits and production over people, and due to what is a disgraceful lack of oversight is now causing parents and caregivers to struggle to feed their kids.”